Linking Tampa & the Plateau

Written By: Marlene Osteen | Issue: 2021/04 – April

Hood Craddock

The overriding focus of Hood Craddock’s profession is helping families.  He’s a Cashiers neighbor, having lived for many years in Big Sheep Cliff as a seasonal resident, where his wife and children have enjoyed many springs, summers, and autumns in this beautiful area and now the kids are grown and on their own.   

When Craddock is not enjoying his home in Cashiers, he is at the Tampa Bay Trust Company in Tampa, Florida, where he serves as Director of Family Office Services assisting individuals and business owners with complex financial situations, often involving multiple generations of family members.  He’s a firm believer that doing business in person on the local level is most effective and leads to a successful long-term wealth management plan for his clients.   

Why is this relevant to the Cashiers-Highlands area?  The Tampa Bay and Southwest Florida markets have a closely-tied relationship with the Plateau. 

“Thousands of residents in and around our corporate footprint have seasonal homes they enjoy in North Carolina, specifically in the Highlands-Cashiers region,” said Craddock, “so it made sense to establish an office here to accommodate them.”   

Early last year, The Trust Company opened their new office in Cashiers and just recently relocated to a larger space. 

“My colleagues and I enjoy the home feel of the new space, since it aligns with our culture and preference of building personal relationships with our visitors, unlike the ‘big box’ banking experience that has become so prevalent with some national firms,” said Craddock. 

The local office serves as a space to talk with visitors and better understand their financial and estate planning needs.  However, The Trust Company is not limited to serving Florida residents, and works with clients from around the U.S. 

He stresses that “We view our investments through a family office lens – evaluating all assets, not just liquid resources. We also understand that wealth is a long-term currency for both current and future generations.” 

The firm’s emphasis is on getting to know the family very well, working on its behalf and thinking broadly on a multigenerational level; the transition of wealth from one generation to the next.   

Craddock is a Certified Public Accountant and his expertise spans family education and governance, wealth transfer, business succession and philanthropic giving – a result of some 40 years of experience serving clients with special assets.  

He got his start at KPMG in Tampa – the prominent “Big Four” accounting firm, working there for 13 years as a tax partner.  

From there, he went on to a family real estate and agriculture business in Polk County, Florida, serving as Chief Financial Officer and President. 

After 20 years, he founded his own multi-family office-consulting firm “providing coordination and integration of all financial resources for high-net-worth families.”  

In 2015 he merged his firm with the Tampa Bay Trust Company to accommodate his clients’ expanding needs for high level investment management and trust services.  

The Cashiers office is open seasonally and by appointment at 268 Hwy 107 South in Cashiers and Hood Craddock can be reached at (863) 528-1194 or [email protected]    

The Sanibel Captiva Trust Company’s Fiduciary Services may only be provided from their offices in Florida. The Tampa Bay Trust Company and The Naples Trust Company are divisions of The Sanibel Captiva Trust Company of Sanibel, Florida.

by Marlene Osteen